Fire and the Built Environment - Case Study Example

Introduction There was a major fire that had occurred in the year 1999 in Mount Blanc tunnel. The devastating fire occurred in the year 1999. The Mount Blanc Tunnel ,11.6 km long, the world’s largest road tunnel connecting Chamonix of France and Courmayeur of Italy under the Mont Blanc Massif. The tunnel is a single bore two lane tunnel .The shape of tunnel is a horseshoe with 7m wide roadway and two 0.8 walkways on either sides.At each 300 m, there are rest areas for vehicles with 3.15m width by 30m long located on the alternative side of the roadways numbering 1 to 36 at the direction from France to Italy.Opposite of each rest area, there is a designated U-turn for trucks. The fire occurred in 1999. Belgium truck ,that was the heaviest truck, stopped at 6.7 kilometer at the France-Italy direction. The growth of the fire was on account of the large fuel loaded in the truck, which was also containing 550 liters of diesel inside the fuel tank, 9 tons of margarine and 12 tons of flour and the shell of the refrigerated trailer, which was constructed from combustible isothermal foam. The fire spread quickly and also caught vehicles standing behind. The whole tunnel was filled with intense heat and smoke preventing emergency and fire fighting operatives to reach the place. At the time fire engulfed the place there, the air flow was very weak approximately between 1 to 1.5 m/s towards Italy/France direction forcing the smoke and flame to spread towards the direction of France entrance, as a consequence number of vehicles standing behind the truck could not escape themselves being caught in the fire. It took complete two days to completely put down the fire, meanwhile temperature had touched 1000°C. Fire took the lives of 39 people, most of them were drivers who were trapped inside the tunnel with fire all around. Many of the drivers stayed inside or just near the trucks but those people who tried to escape could only run for 100-500 m and collapsed on account of the smoke. This showed that smoke had huge quantity of toxic with CO content rising quickly for more than 150 ppm within minutes. The main aim after the fire occurred was to create a tunnel that would be having more fire resistant materials. There was loss of human lives in the tunnel and more than 30 vehicles were gushed down in the vagaries of fire. These vehicles were stationed at their rest areas between 19 and 23 covering a distance of 1.2 km. Fire fighting from both the sides of the tunnel operators were unable to keep control over the fire and after investigations showed that many of the victims died in a time span of just 15 minutes after the fire was detected. The main things that was done 1. Fire-resistant sheeting fitted to its walls 2. More traffic lights and flashing warning signs 3. Fireproof doors and a video link to one of three command posts 4. There have been a total of 116 smoke extractors that was fitted in every 100 meters. 5. 76 new fresh air vents has been created. 6. There has been installation of heat sensors at both ends of the tunnel. This are done to detect the trucks that has been overheat. 7. There has been installation of 120 video cameras that will be monitoring traffic at all times. 8. Three command posts with one in French side and other in the Italian side. The third will be the central post that will be overlooked by the fire fighting unit. The health and safety of any person working at a construction site should be provided and that should be sufficient. That means the fire-fighting equipment, fire detection; alarm systems should be suitably located. The firefighting equipment and fire detection and alarm systems should be examined and that should be tested at suitable intervals and that should be maintained. Any fire equipment that has not been designed should be easily accessible if it has to be used. All persons at work should be instructed to have the correct use of fire-fighting equipment that may be necessary to be used. The fire –fighting equipment should be reasonably practicable. The aim of the essay is to analyze any 4 different fires in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland for last 25 years. The report would be covering the use of any large- and medium-scale fire and explosion disasters. The report would demonstrate the analytical skills applied to fire-related disasters in the built environment. How the fire would affect the fire in buildings and how it is going to affect the people, and the key steps that should be understood are the identification of the hazards, identifying the people that has got significant risk of fire, the evaluation of the risks, recording the findings and the actions taken, and keeping the assessment under review. The source of fire ignition should be understood like the smoker materials, naked flames, and hot work process like welding, faulty or misplaced electrical lines and the areas should be checked. That shows the importance of fire engineers. The reason is that fire safety can be placed under the Hazard elimination and risk control. Fire in Statistics There were a total of 50,520 fires (primary, secondary and chimney fires - see note 5.5 for definitions) in Scotland in 2006, 8 per cent higher than the 46,971 fires recorded in 2005.( http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/04/25114918/3) Thirty per cent (14,930) were primary fires, of which 67 per cent were in buildings, 26 per cent were road vehicle fires and the remainder other outdoor fires. (http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/04/25114918/3)Secondary fires (33,907) accounted for 67 per cent of all fires, compared with 65 per cent in 2005.( http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/04/25114918/3) The number of primary fires fell for the seventh consecutive year to 14,930, down from 15,126 the previous year.( http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/04/25114918/3) Secondary fires rose by 12 per cent to stand at 33,907 and this accounted for the majority of the increase in total fires. Chimney fires rose by 16 per cent to 1,683 in 2006, from 1,456 in 2005.( http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/04/25114918/3) The total number of fires in Scotland in 2006 (50,520) was almost the same as the number ten years previously in 1997 (50,759), however there have been some large changes in the intervening years. In 2006, the number of primary fires has fallen by about a fifth (21 per cent) compared to 1997 and chimney fires have fallen by almost two-thirds (64 per cent). (http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/04/25114918/3)The number of secondary fires has risen by a quarter (25 per cent) from the number in 1997(http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/04/25114918/3) Building fires In 2006, there were a total of 9,961 building fires in Scotland, down 3 per cent from 10,244 in 2005 and the seventh consecutive year the number of building fires has fallen.( http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/04/25114918/3) Dwelling fires accounted for 70 per cent (6,972 fires) of Scotland's total buildings fires in 2006. (http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/04/25114918/3)This is a higher percentage than in any of the other UK countries.( http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/04/25114918/3) In comparison to 1997, the number of both building fires and dwellings fires is down by a quarter (25 per cent).( http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/04/25114918/3) Scotland One of Scotland's best known streets was sealed off today after a major fire.( http://www.heraldscotland.com/landmark-scottish-street-sealed-off-after-major-fire-1.875262)Ashton Lane, in the heart of the Glasgow's West End, was closed to the public as firefighters dealt with the blaze.( http://www.heraldscotland.com/landmark-scottish-street-sealed-off-after-major-fire-1.875262)The fire is understood to have started in kitchens of the Cul de Sac restaurant around midday today and spread to the neighbouring Grosvenor - which houses a cinema, bar and restaurant.( http://www.heraldscotland.com/landmark-scottish-street-sealed-off-after-major-fire-1.875262)Both venues are operated by G1 Group, owned by Glasgow businessman Stefan King.( http://www.heraldscotland.com/landmark-scottish-street-sealed-off-after-major-fire-1.875262)Five fire engines from across Glasgow and firefighters with breathing apparatus were at the scene as they tried bring the fire under control.( http://www.heraldscotland.com/landmark-scottish-street-sealed-off-after-major-fire-1.875262) However, thick plumes of black smoke spread across surrounding streets, including Byres Road. Shortly before 1pm the well-known restaurant the Ubiquitous Chip restaurant was evacuated amid concerns that the fire would spread further.( http://www.heraldscotland.com/landmark-scottish-street-sealed-off-after-major-fire-1.875262)The cobbled lane is one of Scotland's best known destinations for nightlife and is filled with bars and restaurants(http://www.heraldscotland.com/landmark-scottish-street-sealed-off-after-major-fire-1.875262) Hundreds of Londoners evacuated after major fire More than 300 people were evacuated from several blocks of flats in London Thursday after a fire spread from a nearby building site, police said. Four people, including one police officer, were taken to hospital with smoke inhalation. (http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/296449,hundreds-of-londoners-evacuated-after-major-fire.html)A spokesman for London Fire Brigade said the fire in the south-eastern area of Peckham was probably sparked by gas cylinders. (http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/296449,hundreds-of-londoners-evacuated-after-major-fire.html)The fire had spread rapidly to several blocks of flats as residents, including many mothers with babies, fled their homes. (http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/296449,hundreds-of-londoners-evacuated-after-major-fire.html)"People are scared, they are standing in bus shelters and there are babies who have been woken up," an eyewitness reported. (http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/296449,hundreds-of-londoners-evacuated-after-major-fire.html)The fire came just five months after six people died when a blaze ripped through a block of flats in nearby Camberwell. (http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/296449,hundreds-of-londoners-evacuated-after-major-fire.html )Fire could be considered as the biggest threats that have been affecting the building fabric and people. There have been many buildings that has fallen victim to the havoc of fire.( http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/296449,hundreds-of-londoners-evacuated-after-major-fire.html) Crews tackle major warehouse fire Eight fire appliances attended the major warehouse blaze (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7925560.stm)About 50 firefighters have been tackling a major fire at a warehouse in Cambuslang, South Lanarkshire. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7925560.stm)Crews were called to the blaze in the Dream Beds warehouse at about 2130 GMT on Wednesday. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7925560.stm)No-one was inside when the fire broke out and there was no risk to surrounding properties. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7925560.stm)A spokesman for Strathclyde Fire and Rescue said crews were forced to fight the fire externally due to the intense heat and smoke. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7925560.stm)At the height of the blaze, eight fire appliances, including two aerial rescue pumps, were in attendance. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7925560.stm)Three fire appliances remained at the scene and an investigation into the cause is under way.( http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7925560.stm) How to prevent fire in buildings when construction has been done The first stage in building construction would be the concept stage which is the general idea is formulated to commence the design. In this stage, the clients will given the general concept what is his main idea of the construction to be. The owner will also provide the basic idea of what he would expect from the building to be. The financer will consider both the owner and client’s ideas and generate information on the feasibility and costing of their concept. A most suitable concept will approach after the negotiations between the three parties to approach the best result for the construction to be. There has to be Development Approvals & Processes Discuss the Development approval and Building Rules Consent (to build) processes applicable to all building. The second stage will be the design stage, the major concept will be put into drawings and all considered issues will be included while producing the drawings of deigns. The participant in this stage will include the clients, the design team who architect and engineer will work together, builder who might be take part in design stage to provide information on the actual constructing ideas. Project manager, fire service, building surveyor, private certifier and etc will also play a part in this stage to make sure the construction move in a smooth path. The duration of design stage depend on the size and complexity of the building. The third stage which is the construction stage, the client will be observing the whole construction stage to ensure every issue been well done. The design team in this stage will be responsible to follow up the actual design and modifications have to be done if any required. The cost consultant or quantity surveyor will be managing the expenses on this period for the clients. The fourth stage will be the classification which the major issue, without a Certification of Classification from the appropriate Local Government or Private Certifier the construction would not be able process or be occupant. In this section, the participant such as the client, design team, fire service inspector and associated council or Private Certifier will be responsible to ensure the building to fulfill all the aspects. This issue will be checked along the construction process and proper adjustment will be made to fulfill the requirements. All issue been marked to be made any adjustment will be well communicate with the design team and clients for approval and further discussions. This process will last until the very end of the construction. There has to be . Building Life Cycle that would discusses the life cycle process that buildings go through, discusses those stages that the building has already experienced and identifies the current cycle. There has to be Elements of the Construction Phase List and discuss each element of the construction phases completed and those yet to be completed. . Fire and life Safety systems would be covering the passive and list the dynamic fire and life safety features of this building (or to be provided when the building is finished). These typically include such features as compartmentation separation egress, fire safety systems and alternative solutions necessary to offset deficiencies in Deemed to Satisfy (DTS) requirements. Also describe any fire and life safety systems and procedures adopted during the construction phase and any proposed management systems. There has to be Potential Fire Growth and Spread that would describe how a fire on the ground floor may develop and spread through the building. Discuss the passive features provided that will reduce the impact of a fire in any building. There has to be Design Approval and Construction Issues that would List and discuss problems and issues that have emerged during the design approval and construction phases, and remedial actions taken include any constructability, safety, industrial and political issues which have arisen. References Hundreds of Londoners evacuated after major fire,viewed and retrived from http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/296449,hundreds-of-londoners-evacuated-after-major-fire.html GERRY BRAIDEN,2008,Landmark Scottish street sealed off after major fire,http://www.heraldscotland.com/landmark-scottish-street-sealed-off-after-major-fire-1.875262 "Crews tackle major warehouse fire",viewed and retrived from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7925560.stm Statistical Bulletin: Crime and Justice Series: Fire Statistics Scotland, 2006,viewed and retrived from http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/04/25114918/3 Read More